In reply to UKC/UKH Gear: It was pointed out recently that many of my comments regarding gear reviews expressed disbelief at the price of the gear being reviewed. I thought I'd be able to hold off commenting for a while but this one is the biggest joke yet. £75? Seventy five pounds? For a thermos flask. OH. MY. GOD. I can't believe what I've just read.

Edit: In March, my girlfriend and I drove down from Sheffield and had eight days in Devon which cost us slightly more each than the price of two thermos flasks. Unbelievable.

Simes - a review thread just wouldn't be a review thread without one of your comments!

Actually, I'm rather inclined towards your perspective on this. I remember reviewing a base layer that was jolly good, but I couldn't really say that it was 10 times better than one from Decathlon because that is how much it was - about 10x the price of cheap alternative.

I'm sure this is a great flask but it's about 20 x the price of my big one I got in Asda, and my Asda one works very well, so can it be 20 times better? But I guess price and quality aren't in a neat relationship like that.

> To an extent you do get what you pay for. I have a Thermos 'thin and light' ( or something like that), which is massively better insulated than the average, even with big dents in it.

I have one of those - 530 g, compared to the 1300 g of an empty "ultimate". A really good flask - noticeably lighter than than my old 1L Stanley flask and keeps drinks hot at least all day. Given that I am a fair-weather sport climber, more than enough for my purposes.

In reply to Ridge:
Hot Ribena or Vimto is the stuff to drink. It's quick and faff free to make, and leaves the flask easy to clean out — but not that monster from Stanley, something like the Thermos Ultimate which does the job really well and yet doesn't weigh as much as a house brick.

Another vote for the Thermos Ultimate - one of the most essential items of my climbing kit. Light enough for multi-pitch climbs (tea at the top out is bliss), no flaskey taste, stays hot all day, sensible price.